Propelling apparatus for water sports and for life-saving



Mara] 18, 1924; 1,487,568 7 C. BERKA PROPELLING APPARATUS FOR WATER SPORTS AND FOR LIFE SAVING File d Jan. 31 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 1 I A I 1 I 2/ I ,6 /4 4,

l v I 25 /0 /2 1 ATTORNEY Patented Mar. 18, 1924s.

STATES CHARLES IBERKA, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

PROPELLING APPARATUS FOR. WATER. SPORTS AND FOR LIFE-SAVING.

Application filed January 31, 1924 Serial No. 689,598.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES BERKA, a citizen of Austria, and a resident of New York city, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Propelling Apparatus for Water Sports and for Life- Saving, of which the following is a specification.

The invention resides in a buoyant device or apparatus capable of sustaining, in water, the weight of the human body and adapted to permit a person holding onto the device to propel himself or herself through the water. The device or apparatus of my invention is intended for use in water sports or for pleasure and also as means for saving life. The invention may be used by persons who can swim and also by persons having no knowledge of swimming.

in its preferred construction, the device of my invention comprises two elongated parallel air-tight horizontal cylinders or pontoons having pointed or conical forward ends, a rigid frame connecting the pontoons at their forward portions and holding them properly spaced apart, a hinged blade'or hinged blades extending transversely between the sides of said frame and consequently between said pontoons and a handlebar extending transversely between said pontoons and adapted to be grasped by the hands of a person using the device. When a person in the water and holding onto the aforesaid handle-bar, thrusts or, pushes the device forwardly, the said blade or blades will turn horizontally so as to cut through the water and permit the device to be moved forwardly with slight effort on the part of the user, and thereafter, when the user pulls rearwardly or toward himself on the handle bar to retract the device, said blade or blades will close to present broad surfaces to the water and resist rearward fmovement of the device, with the result that the user will be drawn forwardly through the water toward the device. The operation just described will be repeated again and again, the device being thrust forwardly with free dom and on each attempted retraction or backward pull on the device, the user being drawn forwardly. It is obvious that a number of persons using the device of my invention in the water, could arrange to race one another and in various other ways employ the devices for sport orpleasure. If

the devices are placed on a boat and a wreck orother accident should occur, the persons on board could use the devices not only to keep themselves afloat but to propel themselves away from the wreck and to a place of safety.

The invention will be fully understood from the detailed description hereinafter presented, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal section, taken on the dotted line 11 of Fig. 3, through a propelling apparatus or device embodying my invention, the device being shown on a body of water and the operative propelling position of the parts of the device being shown by solid lines, while by dotted lines 1 indicate the non-propelling position of said parts;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view illustrating the several parts of the device in disassembled relation and ready to be assembled;

Fig. 3 is a plan View of the device, with its parts shown'in propelling relation;

Fig. a is a vertical transverse section through the same, taken On the dotted line 44 of Fig. 3, and I i Fig. 5 is a longitudinal transverse section, partly broken away, through the same, taken on the dotted line 55 of Fig. 4, but showing the parts of the device in the non-propelling position represented by dotted lines in Fig. 1.

In the drawings 10, 10 designate two horizontal parallel spaced-apart air-tight cylinders or pontoons having pointed or conical forward ends 11 and fiat or blunt rear ends 12, said forward ends permitting the pontoons to move forward-1y through the water 13 with considerable freedom and said rear ends operating to resist rearward movei- 16111 of the pontoons through the water. The pontoons 10 will preferably be made of aluminum. I

The. pontoons 10 are connected together and held properly spaced apart ,bya rectangular bar frame letcomprising vertical side members 15, a top member 16 and a bottom member 17. Theframe 14 inclines,

to a limited extent, downwardly and rearwardly, as shown in Fig. 1, and projects downwardly to a considerable extent below the lower horizontal plane of the pontoons.

The frame 14 has hinged or pivoted between its sides, the, transverse wings or blades 18 which may turn to horizontal position, as shown by dotted @lines in Fig l, or upwardly into overlapping vertical position, as shown by solid lines in Figs. 1 and 4, said blades when in horizontal position being adapted to move forwardly through the water with little resistance and when in vertical position to substantially close the openingthrough the frame 1d and strongly resist rearward movement of the device. The blades 18 may be of wood and they preferably taper toward their free edges and at their rear ends are mounted between the sides 15 of the frame 14 by means of pivot pins 19 which have bearings in apertures formed in said sides.

The frame 14: has rigidly secured to the upper portions of its sides 15 the parallel corresponding longitudinal bars 20, whose forward ends have broad flanges 21 to lap upon the forward edges of said sides and pins 22 to pass freely through apertures 23 in said sides, the outer ends of said pins being threaded to receive securing nuts 2d which are screwed up against said side The bars 20 are slid into stirrups or metal loops 25 rigidly secured to the facing sides of the pontoons 10, there preferably being two of said stirrups or loops on each pontoon. When the bars 20 are in position in the stirrups 0r loops 25, the sides to of the frame it are engaged at their forward edges by the flanges 21 and at their rear edges by the forward stirrups or loops 25, and hence the frame 14: becomes very rigidly held in position.

The rear ends of the bars 20 are formed with transverse apertures 26 (Fig. 2) which align with apertures 27 formed in. the rear stirrups or loops 25, and these aligned apertures 26, 27 receive pins 28 which are rigid with and project outwardly from the ends of the handle bar 29. The pins 28 by 'entering the aligned apertures 26, 27 serve to lock the bars 20 in position and also secure the handle bar 29 in position.

The bar 29 is to be grasped in the hands of the user of the device and said bar 6X- tends transversely across the space between the two pontoons and is positioned somewhat in rear of a transverse central line through the pontoons, as shown in Fig. l.

The method of employing the apparatus hereinbefore described will largely be understoodfrom what has already been stated. With the device or apparatus on the water. a person in the water by grasping hold of the handle bar 29 may remain afloat without any effort on his part to do so, and when the user of the apparatus desires to propel himself through the water he will first push forwardly on the handle bar 12 to thrust the device to the position illustrated by dotted lines in Fig. 1, the wings 18 then turning horizontally due to the pressure of the water and offering substantially no resistance to the forward movement of the device, and thereupon the user will draw rearwardly on the handle bar 29, allowing his arms to bend while doing so, and the resistance to the rearward movement of the device will result in the person being drawn toward the device or forwardly. When the device is in its forward position shown by dotted lines in Fig. 1 and then an attempt is made to pull the device rearwairdly, the wings 18 fold upwardly to close the passage through the frame 14, said wings then resisting the rearward movement of the device, since they present their fiat faces to the water. The resistance to the rearward movement of the device is lso increased by the flat rear ends of the pontoons 10. By lternately thrusting the device forwardly and then attempting to pull the same rearwardly, a person may propel himself a great distance through the water. of supporting a person and in that. way prevent drowning, and it is also adapted to permit a person having no knowledge-of swimming to propel himself through the water to any extent that may be desired. it is believed that persons possessing these devices may inaugurate many water sports with their use. If the devices are carried on a yacht or other vessel andan accident should occur, the persons on board could use the devices as life saving apparatus and also as means for propelling themselves from the scene of the accident and to a place of safety.

l have shown and'described the preferred construction of the device or apparatus, but am aware that the details of construction may be modified within the spirit and scope of my invention. a

The device may be disassembled and carried on an ordinary hand bag of moderate size. In disassembling the device, the handle bar 29 may be sprung out from the apertures 26, 27 and then the frame it and bars 20 may be slid forwardly from the strips or loops 25; thereafter the nuts 24 may be removed from the screws 22 and the bars 20 detached from the frame 14. Ir will not be necessary to detach the blades or wings 18, because they may be folded to their flat position shown in Fig. 1.

What I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters-Patent, is:

1. A. buoyant apparatus of the character described comprising elongated longitudinal spaced apart pontoons, a transverse frame connecting the same, a foldable resistance wing adapted to permit free forward movement of the apparatus through water and resist rearward movement thereof, and a handle-bar to be grasped'by a user of the.

apparatus for alternately thrusting the apparatus forwardly and drawing himself to- The device is buoyant and capable ward the apparatus, whereby the user is enabled to propel himself through the water.

2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, in which the pontoons are hollow air tight cylinders having pointed forward ends and blunt rear ends.

3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, in which said frame is a rectangular frame between the walls of which said wing is pivoted, and in which the handle bar is in rear of said frame and forwardly from the rear ends of the pontoons.

4:. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, in which the means forconnecting the transverse frame with the pontcons comprise loops secured to the pontoons and longitudinal bars mounted in said loops and fastened to the sides of said frame.

5. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, in which the handle bar and frame are connected with the pontoons by means comprising a plurality of loops secured to the facing sides of the pontoons, longitudinal bars mounted in said loops, means securing said frame to the forward ends of said bars adjacent to the forward loops and means securing the rear ends of said bars, the rear loops and the ends of the handle bar together.

6. A buoyant apparatus of the character described comprising elongated longitudinal spaced apart pontoons, a normally open rectangular transverse frame connecting the same, pivoted resistance wings secured between the sides of said frame and adapted when folded to close the passage through said frame and when thrust forwardly against the water to open and clear said passage, and a handle bar to be grasped by a user of the apparatus for alternately thrusting the apparatus forwardly and drawing himself toward the apparatus, whereby the user is enabled to propel himself through the water. Signed at New York city, in the county of New York and State of New York, this 30th day of January, A. D. 1924:.

CHARLES BERKA. 

